Insurance Institute for Highway Safety

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) is a U.S. nonprofit organization funded by auto insurers, established in 1959 and headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. It works to reduce the number of motor vehicle crashes, and the rate of injuries and amount of property damage in the crashes that still occur. It carries out research and produces ratings for popular passenger vehicles as well as for certain consumer products such as child car booster seats. It also conducts research on road design and traffic regulations, and has been involved in promoting policy decisions.

The Institute's front crash test differs from that of the American government's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) New Car Assessment Program in that its tests are offset. This test exposes 40% of the front of the vehicle to an impact with a deformable barrier at approximately 40 mph (64 kph). Because only 40% of the vehicle's front must stand the impact, it shows the structural strength better than the NHTSA's full-width testing does. The IIHS began this crash test in January 1995.

Many real-life frontal impacts are offset. However, the NHTSA's full frontal crash tests result in the occupant compartment going through greater deceleration. The full frontal crash test is more suitable for evaluating restraint systems such as seat belts and airbags.

The IIHS and NHTSA test results can differ; for example, the NHTSA gave the Chevrolet Venture (also marketed as the Oldsmobile Silhouette and Pontiac Montana/TransSport) 4/5 stars (with 5 stars being the best and 1 star the worst), but the IIHS rated it "Poor" for its poor structural integrity which becomes apparent in the offset crash test. This minivan was one of the poorest performers since the offset frontal crash tests were begun in 1995. The same applies for the 1997–2003 Ford F-150.

An analysis by the IIHS found that a driver of a vehicle rated "Good" is 46% less likely to die in a frontal crash, compared with a driver in a "Poor" rated vehicle . A 33% reduction was found for drivers in an "Acceptable" or "Marginal" rated vehicle.

The IIHS evaluates six individual categories, assigning each a "Good", "Acceptable", "Marginal", or "Poor" rating before determining the vehicle's overall frontal impact rating.

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